San Jose State football: Grading the Week

The Spartans are 7-2 overall and 6-2 in games that count toward the postseason.

They. Are. Eligible.

(It has been a long time and a long climb.)

But unless they win the WAC, the Spartans will be a free agent, available to any bowl in need of a team.

Although they could go anywhere — a vacancy is a vacancy and 70 spots must be filled — the Spartans are more attractive to bowls in the west than those two or three time zones away.

* The Kraft Fight Hunger has one spot filled (Navy) and should have a Pac-12 representative on the other side.

* The Las Vegas Bowl will be booked (Pac-12 vs. MWC).

* The Poinsettia Bowl will be booked (BYU vs. MWC).

* The New Mexico Bowl? There’s a scenario in which the Pac-12 wouldn’t fill its spot, but it’s fairly remote.

* The Hawaii? Hmmmm.

The bowl matches a Mountain West team against a representative from Conference USA, and there’s a chance one of the leagues won’t have a team available.

On the MWC side, the Spartans would need Air Force to lose its final three games, which seems unlikely: The Falcons host lowly Hawaii in two weeks.

I haven’t taken a close look at the C-USA schedules, permutations and pecking order.

But at this point, it has only three eligible teams for five bowls — and everybody else is at least two wins away from becoming eligible.

If there’s an opening on the CUSA side, I’d have to think Hawaii officials would be interested in matching SJSU against one of its past and future conference rivals, like … I dunno … Fresno State or Nevada.

Result: Won at Idaho 42-13

Grade: A-

Comment: The level of competition and the sloppiness (four turnovers) kept me from handing out a higher grade.

* Poignant quote from coach Mike MacIntyre:

“The lowest point in my career was in this building,” MacIntyre said, referring to a 26-23 overtime loss in 2010 to end his first season as coach at 1-12.

“It’s amazing how far we’ve come. We’re not done yet. But this is something we are going to savor for just a second. I’m just so proud of everybody. It’s an emotional day.”

* SJSU outscored Idaho 28-6 in the second half and has now dominated opponents after halftime to the tune of 161-74.

That’s conditioning, depth and halftime adjustments.

* Good: Six sacks.

* Bad: 2.9 yards per rush.

* Good: One penalty.

* Bad: 4 of 13 on third down.

* Another sterling performance by QB David Fales, who threw for 328 yards and four touchdowns and was named WAC Offensive Player of the Week.

* The concern for SJSU at this point is similar to the one facing Stanford:

When you play second-rate competition week after week — and when you beat up on that second-rate competition — there’s a tendency for bad habits to take root.

Problem is, you don’t know the bad habits exist because the opponents aren’t good enough to exploit them.

The combination of bad habits mixed with a string of lopsided wins is a dangerous one and afflicts teams across the country every year … until one too many sloppy performances leads to a loss.

Here’s a Spartan-specific example: Turnovers.

They committed three at Texas-San Antonio and won handily.

They committed three against Texas State and won comfortably.

They committed four at Idaho (three on special teams) and won going away.

That’s 10 turnovers and three decisive wins.

SJSU has one game to correct the problem, because three (or more) turnovers against BYU or LaTech will result in a loss.

Next up: at New Mexico State

The matchup: The Aggies are quite possibly the worst team SJSU has faced, at least since UC Davis and maybe including Davis.

NMSU lost to Idaho.

NMSU lost to Texas-San Antonio.

NMSU has lost to everyone on its schedule since Aug. 30, when it thumped Sacramento State.

So yes, SJSU should win handily. (It’s a three-touchdown favorite for a reason.)

In fact, we’re going to do what the players and coaches cannot do: We’re going to assume a victory.

What matters to the Spartans, in the context of their presumptive eighth win of the season, is:

1) Staying healthy for the two huge games down the stretch, and

2) Correcting all the mistakes that have surfaced over the past few weeks, with turnovers topping the list.

Jon Wilner

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Yes Jon – turnovers against BYU and La Tech will really hurt SJSU Spartans. Lets hope that Tyler Ervin is back for the BYU game. Need him on Kickoff returns. Defense and Offensive line will have to play their best against BYU and also La Tech for SJSU to win. Lets hope it happens!!! Great season so far and can be one of the best if we can win the next three. GO SPARTANS!!!

DUsjsu

It would be interesting to hear your thoughts on the BSU loss to San Diego State, and what this could possibly mean for the Spartans. I was suprised to see SDSU recieving a number of votes on the most recent polling and seeing them essentially ranked.

TSL

Agree.
Their were times during Saturday’s game that Idaho looked very capable of pulling ahead and staying there.
SJS must correct these mistakes. Luck and weak opponents can only take you so far. A good team will exploit your mistakes and put you away.
SJS play alert and execute your plays.
End of lecture.

SpartansWinAgain

Need La Tech to lose and then to beat La Tech in the home finale to win a share of the title.

Ranger John

Hawaii Bowl would be a tough sell for a lot of SJS supporters because of the Christmas Holiday peak season airfares…New Mexico Bowl would allow Spartan fans to drive or fly (funny the rates are almost halved the week AFTER the bowl game.

LA Tech has given up quite a lot of points so I think it is not your usual stubborn 300lbs, stuff the middle DLine…if they can not get to Fales, I expect a big game. BYU worries me because of the maturity of those 25 year old married missionaries (?)…vs 18 -21 year old red shirt Spartans…

Having watched BYU before they lost their last (3), they may be a different team now, but still could be bowl eligible A REAL MOTIVATOR

I see the Spartans winning 2 of 3 and cutting those muffed kicks (funny how the announcers at the game said, Spartan players were looking right into lights).

Broncoboss

After Boise State’s putred performance Sat. nigght vs San Diego State I now believe SJSU may play Boise State in the “Famous Potato Bowl” in Boise..I also believe the Spartans will have a chance to win..

Tdmaximus

I was at the game in Moscow and the game was never in doubt. The Spartans were bigger, stronger and faster than Idaho. The people of Moscow and Vandal fans were kind and wonderful.

Spartan Pubber

Jon, normally I wince at your harsh grading of my Spartans, but this time I actually feel the A- grade is overly generous. Too many turnovers, poor 3rd down conversion percentage, and some sloppy play at times led me to give them a B grade. But, just this once, I’m going to agree with you and say you nailed it. By the way, who is that imposter posting under the “Broncoboss” title? It can’t be the same guy that never had a kind word for the Spartans. It must be getting close to the holiday season, because just like the grinch, he’s grown a heart. He actually thinks we have a chance to win!

tk94111

Congratulations from the folks up the 101. Spartans are a good team, with a great QB and a coach that appears to be leading the program in the right direction.

lesliemedford

Cal is too WEENIE to play SJSU, but wouldn’t this be a marvelous few years to have Cal on the schedule? Those would have been some Bay Area victories to relish!

Ranger John

@Leslie:
The Spartans have not played Cal since Jeff Garcia was injured in a 48-0 Cal win….and 4 weeks later Keith Gilbertson (Cal coach) was FIRED…could it have been partly for his GOING FOR TWO with that 48-0 score?

That good (?) sportsmanship is what is wrong with the BCS high scores= higher rankings…also they felt in scheduling that they could get an eastcoast team to play in Memorial Stadium for minimum wage…

MostWanted

The easiest way to get Cal and Stanford to play SJSU on a yearly basis without the bad blood is to extend the invite to the PAC12. If you can drag along WSU, CU and Utah and live with those gems then certainly you can live with the new and improved San Jose State University. Face it they’re here to stay and only going to keep getting better from here on out. Exciting times.

Jack

Aliens will land on he White House lawn before SJSU gets an invite to the PAC.

MostWanted

That was an excellent troll, well done.

*clap* *clap* *clap*

Jack

I prefer to be realistic, not delusional.

SpartansWinAgain

“Need La Tech to lose” and then to beat La Tech in the home finale to win a share of the title.

Strike that, need La Tech to win against USU.

MostWanted

realistic or morbid pleasure out of trying to get back at the *bullies* who pushed you out. Don’t be so selfish. Bet all you want but don’t go bragging about it delusional egomaniac.

ccrider55

MostWanted:

Are you applauding/congratulating your self?
With the PAC rejecting Oklahoma (a top king), there is no plausible circumstance would gain SJSU admittance. They simply add nothing that the PAC doesn’t already have.

Jack

CC,

MostWanted chooses to believe things that are simply unrealistic. They have a pathetic broken down old stadium that only draws 9-12k. The rest of their “facilities” aren’t even on par with many FCS schools. And to think the PAC would add a third school in the Bay Area is simply, well, delusional is the best descriptor I can think of. It’s so ridiculous it’s funny.

Jack – have you ever seen a game in Spartan Stadium. I much rather watch a game in Spartan Stadium than Stanford’s stadium. You feel closer to the action and feel much more involved in the game. It may look old but she is a wonderful stadium. Go SPARTANS!!

Ranger John

I’m with you Doug, there is no “jack” about it…I’ve been going since ’61 or ’62 when I was a boy scout usher.

Let’s just worry about beating those other MWC teams down the road AFTER finishing STRONG in ’12

Go Spartans (I think some screens will do well the next few games).

Jill

Spartan stadium is an old wreck and half of it is a dirt berm. There are better high school stadiums.

MostWanted

you would know thats where youve been hanging around trying to pick up a date.

MostWanted

ccrider55,

the pac doesn’t have San Jose, California. No matter how much the media much the media tries to flood out the spartans with the pro teams and Stanford and and cal San Jose doesn’t love you. Oklahoma is not “king” here, maybe to espn but nobody cares about oklahoma here. San Jose is king. Ask every pro team including the 49ers. Also the Bill Walsh Legacy game was more exciting than “big game”. People don’t get excited about labels. Yeah the MWC awaits for now but the ultumate goal should be the PAC and the new stadium is coming. If SJ had been invited there would alrrady be a new stadium. Can you imagine Stanford, Cal, UCLA, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, et al ciming ti San Jose every other year?

sent frim my Galaxy SIII

gurugrease

SJS bowl prospects are still positive and a 8-4/9-3 SJS team would be almost impossible to keep out of a bowl, regardless of destination. There are just too many teams likely to go 6-6 in non-power conferences whose profile would be lower than SJS.

As far as staying in the West, that most likely went out the window this weekend courtesy of Boise’s loss on the Blue Turf. The MWC has 5 bowl tie-ins and now, only 5 likely teams to be eligible. New Mexico’s loss to UNLV was ‘huge’ for the Spartans. If Boise had won out, by finishing ahead of the B1G champ in the BCS standings (and ranked higher than 16) they would have been assured of a spot in a BCS game…which would have meant everyone else in the MWC would have moved up a spot in the pecking order. With only 5 teams eligible, it would have left a spot open for the New Mexico Bowl to pick SJS as an at large team.

C-USA has 6 bowl tie ins, and perhaps only 5 teams that will make it (keep an eye on Houston vs Marshall for qualificaiton). Hawaii Bowl, along with New Orleans Bowl and Ticket City Bowl get choices 4 through 6 in C-USA. Assuming these bowls in the southeast would rather pick someone else over SJS as an at large because of lack of C-USA eligible teams, it’s possible that the Hawaii Bowl could go with SJS.

More likely though, it will be one of the following bowls who will have one or two openings based on conference affiliation agreements without enough eligible teams:

I watched the Idaho game on TV and SJS was the more talented team by far and the turnovers in the first half kept Idaho in the game.
SJS should win easily against NMS this Saturday, but, you still cannot overlook them in anticapation of the BYU game at home.

I cannot give enough props to David Fales he has been outstanding and so have our excellent receivng corp. The running game needs to improve and we did miss Tyler Ervin running back punts and kickoffs.
Eskridge even becomes more important to keep healthy with Ervin out.

By the way, if any Spartan fans have Direct TV and the Sports Package, the game in on TV this Saturday on channel 682 in HD at 12:30pm Pacific Time.

Go Spartans!

TSL

Agree on BlueSpartan’s point regarding Mr Ervin.
Besides handling kick returns well he is very able in the backfield.
Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery to Tyler Ervin.

Matt “MT” Hamilton

From Jimmy Durkin’s story:
“Finally we just said, ‘Forget it, spread ’em out, we’re throwing it,’ and it was over,” MacIntyre said.
That’s what I’ve been saying since game one! We can throw on anyone. Stop forcing the run game (it isn’t there) and bomb away from the opening kickoff. Fales will go down as the best quarterback in SJSU history and he’s throwing to the best set of receivers, end to end including the tight end, in the history of the program. Don’t waste them for a half and then start throwing with the game in jeopardy. Put the game out of reach as early as you can.
I’m flying up from the desert to take the family to the BYU game the weekend after this. Can’t wait. Bombs away against New Mexico State.
Go Spartans!

Coach M.

What a glorious problem! What bowl does Sjsu deserve and which one will they be invited to.
Finally I can put my attention on a winning team and not worry about what outsiders are saying about the program.

Some of you really know what your talking about while others are clueless and/or enjoy making absolutely no sense. Why there is PAC talk here is alien to me. But I don’t understand most Spartan fans. So this is just an escalation of that.

Congratulations to everyone pulling for the Spartans:
Mostly the football team as a unit!
Props to:
Individual players for committing to turning this horrible mess around.
To the recruiters who pitched them.
And to coach Mac for doing all he’s done. For. Not giving up and actually became a much better COACH This Season!
To the whole athletics dept. we are NOW 1/won.
To the other athletics programs.
The Band
The Spirit Squad.
And all the boosters fans and other Spartan Supporters.
This is the best time to be a Spartan since probably Jack Elway routinely embarrassed his son by leading the Spartans to victory over the Card.

My first live game was Sjsu. Beating Stanford in 1989. I enrolled In 1990, and enjoyed watching that team defeat Card again, almost beating Cal at Cal and destroying FSU 42-7 to finish, as THE best spartan team since who knows how long??

Sjsu will prob. Never have another team THAT good. But this team definaty can be the best since.
As much as I love this rec. corps. They are Not better than 90-91 Young guns.

But they are good enough to compare.

But when u include the tight end position in that argument:
Ryan Otten could not hold Bryce Burnetts water bottle.
Bryce had nfl star written all over him, until he got hurt game 2 of 91 at The metrodome (nfl venue) vs Minnesota. Which he never really recovered from.
So, The arguement should be: which is the best fb team SINCE 90.

Well 92 was a great team but choked?? At home vs. nmsu keeping us out of the title and out of the Vegas. Bowl (which we still were the only qualif. Team-big west)
And the program has still hasn’t recovered from that simple loss.

2001 or 2? team was the best since. But I think that ended in the Baldwin debacle: which further suffocated the program.
So really the only really good team since 90 is 06! That was a pretty good team.
So, this years team has not yet surpassed that team. But if they run the table. They definately will. Even a possible loss to ByU, will not deter this.

So, looking back at spartan fb over the past 20+ years: the has been a production of ONE!!! Good team. Nm bowl trophy to prove it! But throughout the last couple decades it has been mostly worse than ugly.

But, those days are over: so let’s enjoy the success we have earned, this year.
And take it to the next level.

Go Spartans!!

Coach M.

And thanks Jon for the fair and good coverage of spartan athletics and college sports as a whole.

D.A.W.G

I am a Spartan, and while the sight lines at Spartan Stadium are fantastic, the infrastructure of the facility, i.e., bathrooms, concessions, ADA access, are substandard and need to be upgraded. The rest of our sports facilities are worse and also need to be brought into the 1990’s, even if it is 2012. The Athletic Department cannot afford to upgrade any of the buildings because our tightwad alumni will not give significant amounts of money. How could we afford a jump to the PAC? Even if they wanted us, where are we going to come up with the hundreds of millions of dollars it would take to compete for recruits at the PAC level?
Did we ever win the WAC in football or basketball? No
Will we ever win the MWC in football or basketball? Not unless we, as alumni, start giving MORE money, and a lot of it. There is a financial arms race going on in college athletic, and we are losing. Being bowl eligible is great, but there are no guaranteed spots for us this year, ad unless you are willing to continue to live through this boom/bust football program, we have to start giving more money.

Totally agree Matt! We certainly need to have Bombs away to beat BYU and La Tech!!!! Hope we get the Bowl game in Texas on New Years Day. That would be amazing for the program.

Coach M.

Matt,
Your absolutely right. If the run game is not there: do Not force it!
Coach Mac and his staff has done so much better at making adjustments that have proved to be mostly successful. But poor offensive play-calling really hurt us vs. Card.

And was obviously apparent that Forced running (up the middle) was not working vs. USU and cost us a chance at victory via first and goal no points. With a couple of forced middle runs. Lead with your strength. We are so much better in pass game, why force run if it’s repeatedly not working???? Nfi. Having said that: the coaches have game managed/adjusted much better than last 2 seasons, whiCh is 1 reason teams only losses are to card and usu. both real solid teams.

MostWanted

I’m calling it right now.
San Jose State and
Fresno State to the PAC 14
and solidify the Pacific.

Jack

Seek professional help fella. You are really doing a disservice to Spartan fans whom post rational and intelligent comments. But I guess all groups or fan bases have a loony or two amongst their constituency. SJSU to the PAC will never EVER happen. Never in a million years.

MostWanted

you’re the only disgraced loony toons here jag.

Coach M.

What would the PAC add sjsu?? That makes N0 sense other than lower travel costs. Get a grip!

jack

SJSU’s facilities are not even on par with many FCS schools.

SJSU brings NO ADD’L media market.

SJSU’s fan base is less than many FCS schools.

The PAC would add Fresno and San Diego St LONG BEFORE ever adding SJSU.

Sheez, get a grip on reality dude.

MostWanted

1. Keep Winning
2. Get the new stadium built
3. Keep hiring good coaches

The invitation will come.

Don’t let losers plant their negative seeds in your heads.

MostWanted

DP

1. SJSU has the support of school President Mo.

2. Gene Bleymeir (sp?) from Boise State is the AD.

3. Bill Walsh building NEZ stadium project is coming.

4. Coach Macyntire and staff looking good in his 3rd year, right on schedule.

5. Faclities on par with some some of the other MWC schools even with lower budget through no fault of their own.

6. Football 7-2 soon to be 8-2 and going bowling.

7. And this one is just for you. You’ve never been right about anything in any post you’ve ever made under any sock puppet you’ve made up past, present or future. You don’t know anything about football so why even bother posting. Your posts add nothing to the conversation yet you post your idiocy on every SJSU story. I’m through with you. Off you go, back to the gutter with you sewer rat.

MostWanted

8. 2011 APR 981

MostWanted

9. Moving up in competition from WAC to MWC (not just be in the MW but to win it)..

MostWanted

10. The most season ticket holders in the history of the program.

jack

MostWanted must mean you’re the most wanted escapee from a mental institution.

How’s that average attendance this year? I counted more seagulls than fans at the Texas St and Colorado St games.

Why don’t you go post you’re “Invite to the PAC” on InsideSparta? You’ll be laughed off the website.

MostWanted

Why don’t you go post on SpartanThunder? oooop

11. Wins (last 4 in a row) over San Diego State
12. Back to back home and road wins over Navy
13. Win Hawaii (Lasy year and if played this year too)
14. Win over Fresno State @ Fresno

Never, in the history of message boards has a person been so inconsistently wrong about every single thing and yet still has audacity to keep flapping his gums (Mephistopheles, Jack, Jill, yada, yada yada)

You lose again

Jack

I’m done with you.

You can’t fix stupid. People like you should not be allowed to vote. we should make people like you pass a basice IQ test first so we don’t get dumb idiots voted into gov’t positions. Dreamers are just that; living in a fantasy world.

Bye. You’re a wast of my time and bandwidth.

You just can’t fix stupid.

MostWanted

sticks and stones antonia

Coach M.

Sjsu has been so bad, for so long, that some fans can’t handle success. So their dream world takes over and they can’t distinguish the difference. Just enjoy it!

MostWanted

It’s all in good fun, I’m just turning the tables on the pos troll. He likes to get a rise out of people so I’m just giving him a taste of his own medicine.